220 seconds of hell: Aston Villa write a dark chapter in Manchester United's history
A number that has never happened before
Manchester United fans endured an early nightmare at Old Trafford this Sunday evening, their side two goals down to Aston Villa inside the opening four minutes of this tenth-round Premier League clash.
Villa stunned the hosts with a blistering start. Two goals in a matter of minutes left United reeling from the opening whistle, with the Old Trafford stands stunned into silence.
Alisson Edward opened the scoring in the second minute to throw the hosts' plans into disarray. Nicolas Jackson delivered the second blow in the fourth minute, doubling the shock for Red Devils fans.
Statistics specialists Opta laid bare a historic low for United: "After three minutes and 40 seconds, this is the fastest Manchester United have ever trailed 0-2 in their history of participating in the Premier League."
United refused to buckle. Bruno Fernandes pulled one back from the penalty spot in the 16th minute, after Matheus Cunha had won the spot-kick, restoring some hope to the hosts of clawing their way back into the game.
For their part, Squawka drew a parallel with a similar scene at Old Trafford last Tuesday, when Roma became the fastest team to score twice at United's home in a major European competition.
The network said: "Last Tuesday, Roma became the fastest team to score two goals at Old Trafford in a major European competition. And today, Aston Villa became the fastest team to go 2-0 up against Manchester United in the Premier League. Will the Red Devils manage to come back and win again?"
United now faced a brutal examination. Two early blows left them needing a swift response to avoid another defeat in front of their own fans and to wrestle back control of a clash that had begun as an unexpected nightmare.
